


Hesitation

by whitedandelions



Category: Mulan (1998)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Mutual Pining, Post-Canon, Yuletide Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-24 10:20:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17098778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitedandelions/pseuds/whitedandelions
Summary: Mulan and Shang are sent on a mission to take down a corrupt governor by the Emperor.  And this will be routine, only they're meant to go as husband and wife, and Shang has already spent months trying to gather up the courage to ask Mulan for permission to court her.





	Hesitation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SunlitStone](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SunlitStone/gifts).



> happy yuletide! :D

He hasn’t seen Mulan in months.

It’s not from a lack of trying.  He still has tea with her parents and grandma every time he has the chance to, but Mulan’s been far too busy to stop by.  She’s grateful he does, at least that’s what her parents say, so he continues to visit even though he’s still not sure what kind of feelings Mulan has for him.

Shang’s accepted that he likes Mulan ages ago.  He accepted it even when he thought Mulan was actually Ping, so accepting it _now_ when Mulan’s the woman who saved China and still possessed all the qualities that attracted him to her is ridiculously easy.

Mulan doesn’t understand though, or rather Mulan doesn’t have _time_ to understand.  She’s been kept on varying missions given by the Emperor, sometimes with her three friends, sometimes with Shang, but mostly by herself.  Thanks to her time as Ping, she makes a great infiltrator, and he _worries_ even though Mulan never seems to come back with a single scratch.  He sees her across the hall sometimes, when she’s presenting her triumphs to the Emperor, and whenever she notices him looking, she throws him a wink and then disappears after.

He wonders if he should just ask permission to start courting her, but he knows Mulan won’t be very impressed if he doesn’t ask _her_ first.  He just has to find her first to confess, no matter how terrifying the idea is.

And then, he’s given the opportunity when the Emperor calls them both in and sends them on a mission.

* * *

Mulan’s demurely sitting next to him in the carriage, all made up with make-up and long sleeves that aren’t very good for fighting. 

“You look beautiful,” he says, his mouth slack with awe, and she actually rolls his eyes at him.

“It’s the make-up,” she says, and his face must show something because she follows it up with a smile, “Thank you, Shang.”

“How are we going to do this?” he asks, and Mulan suddenly has a map in her hands and he’s baffled because there are absolutely _no_ pockets inside of her get-up. 

When they start going over the battle plans, it feels a little bit like they’ve gone back in time.  Even though all he wants to do is reach over and hold Mulan’s hand, even though every time she glances up at him, his heart stops beating at the very sight of her.

* * *

He’s a little gone for her, and when they arrive, and the herald announces Mulan as his _wife_ , he nearly stumbles.  But Mulan’s grip on him is not just for show, and she easily keeps him standing upright as they walk down the aisle and toward the governor. 

Later, when they’re alone in the quarters they’ve been given, she asks, “Did you not listen when the Emperor was giving us our orders?”

She looks more concerned than angry, and Shang cannot open his mouth and say that he was more distracted by seeing her for the first time in months and it’s not really his fault that he completely blanked on what the Emperor was saying.

She pulls out another piece of paper (he still doesn’t know from where, but he does know better than to ask) and spreads it out on their nightstand. 

They’re investigating the governor for taking bribes from a neighboring country.  There’s been reports of suspicious activity going on, and usually, this is a mission that Mulan can take on her own.  But the governor is reportedly a traditionalist and wouldn’t allow Mulan to visit if she wasn’t going to be coming with a husband.

He’s enraged at that, but he keeps it inside, and he’s glad he does because Mulan looks at him.  “Sorry for getting you involved,” she says, and he shakes his head.

“I haven’t seen you in months,” he explains, “this is a small price to pay to finally spend time with you.  Besides, it’s nice to finally watch your back for once.”

She stares at him for a long moment, and then unexpectedly changes the subject.  “You’ve been spending time with my family.”

“Yes?” he asks, and suddenly his heart starts beating faster.  This isn’t how he expected it to go, but he finds he doesn’t quite mind.  “I thought you were okay with it.”

“I am,” she says, and she’s searching his face for something, her head tilted.  She doesn’t seem to find it though and then sits down on the bed.

“I’ll sleep on the floor,” he blurts out before she can ask, and Mulan looks at him with obvious amusement.

* * *

“Your wife’s a beauty,” says the governor, and Shang really does not like the way he’s looking at Mulan. 

“Yes,” he says, resisting the urge to glare at the man by taking a sip of his tea.  “She is.”  He doesn’t add that Mulan is too good for the likes of him, but only because he thinks it’s rather obvious she is.

Mulan’s sitting with the governor’s wife, as demure as she was back in the carriage.  There’s no hint of the warrior she is beneath, and for a moment, Shang can’t take his eyes off her.  It’s so different from the way she usually is, that he wonders if this is the way Mulan conquers all her missions.  It’s hard to believe Mulan is dangerous, even though he knows she’s probably the most dangerous of everyone in there.

* * *

They’re taken on a tour to the gardens. 

Mulan’s holding onto his arm, her steps small and delicate, and Shang can’t help staring as she leads him down the romantic pathway.  He wonders if he can have this, if Mulan will allow him to be on her arm even if they aren’t trying to fool a governor and his people.  Because he wants it, more than anything, to have this farce of a marriage to be real.  He doesn’t feel pathetic for enjoying the pretending, for holding out his hand for Mulan whenever the path gets a bit treacherous, for teasing her whenever her face changes when her too-long dress gets caught on a stray branch.  She giggles now, behind her hand as a proper maiden, but her eyes promise vengeance when they’re behind closed doors and he’s more enamored than ever.

He’s so distracted by Mulan that he doesn’t notice the governor slipping away at first.  Mulan does, though, and her eyes narrow and then she’s feigning a stomachache.  The governor’s wife and her entourage do worry over her at first, but when it’s clear Shang has got it covered – he moves faster than he does in battle, covering Mulan with his cape to keep her warm and then picking her up in his arms bridal-style – they allow the two of them to leave.

Mulan’s all business after they get away from watchful eyes, dropping lithely from Shang’s grip and already tying her dress up for movement by the time she’s standing.  He flushes when he catches sight of the sword attached to her inner thigh, but Mulan doesn’t even notice, drawing the blade from its sheath and gesturing for him to follow her.

He draws his own sword, and follows, intent on having Mulan’s back.

He’s intensely glad he’s there after everything happens, because after witnessing the governor’s clandestine meeting with an obviously foreign diplomat, Mulan all but jumps the man and takes him hostage. 

“Your training worked well,” he says, when Mulan sits rather primly on the captive man.  She looks up at him, her hair astray from the frantic battle that ensued, and grins up at him. 

“Of course,” she says, “I’ve learned a lot since you last saw me.”

They smile at each other, lost in the moment, before the hostage tries to escape and Mulan has to deal with him.

* * *

It’s not a good time to confess.  He knows there can be better times.

But he has the captive hostage underneath his left arm, and his sword in the other and there’s a multitude of guards heading their way. 

And he fears if he doesn’t say it now, he will never say it.

“I want to be your real husband,” he says, and Mulan has one second to look at him with wide eyes before the guards are there.

She has his back to him the next time they have a lull in battle, and she deflects a guard’s sword before saying, “You couldn’t have told me this before?”

“How?” he can’t help but shouting, his word almost drowned out by the hostage’s scream as a guard swings down on him.  He shifts and then Mulan’s suddenly there, taking down the guard with ease.

They have to make a break for it after that, and he has a second to admire Mulan’s form before he has to take down some guards.

They’re panting, breathless in the carriage when they can finally talk again. 

“I’ve been waiting forever for you to finally ask,” says Mulan, and she tries to make it sound like she’s annoyed, but she’s smiling far too wide for Shang to fall for it.

“Sorry,” he says, and when he reaches for her hand, she lets him take it. 


End file.
